Aurora (Book #1)

Chapter 18

"Aurora" Elena exclaims when she sees me wet and cold from the rain, "Come in, miele"
I haven't been at her mansion since I bought my apartment. Even though she insisted me to stay with her, I wanted to have my own house. My own personal space. She wanted to buy me a vila as a present on my 18th birthday , but I thought the amount of money she spent on me was enough, so I bought an apartment with my own.
"Aurora, what happened?where's your car?" She asks and maybe there were more questions, but i don't hear them, because of the constant ringing in my ears.
"You need to shower" she says.
Yes, but I don't have an energy to.
"Elena I-" I want to complain.
"Bathroom. Now" she says in strict mother tone, "Or im going to bathe you myself"
I look at her with an empty expression and walk to the bathroom. I undress and stepped into the shower. I turn the water and stand under it. I feel the warm water come down, before they turn scorching hot. My favorite temperature. Maybe it'll sound a little masochistic, but I love the way hot water runs down my body. Literally burning it, making it red. Reminding me of a touch.
His touch.
I start to shampoo my hair, to distract myself from my thoughts, but it doesn't help. I fall deeper into them. He loved washing my hair.
I love your curls, tesoro.
I hear his voice, perfectly knowing that this is one of my twisted minds' tricks. I hear him say it over and over again like a broken radio, while feeling him gently massaging my head. Running his fingers up and down my spine to make me shiver, because he knows how much power he has over me and my body. His hands move around my body, exploring it as eagerly as a adventurer would explore a newfound land. Something makes me shift back into reality and I lose the feeling of his presence.
I get out of shower and put towel around my body and my hair. I walk into Elenas room.
"Here are some of your warm clothes, miele wear them, until I bring your tea" i forgot how much of a good mom she was and is to me. She always treated me as her own. I put on the clothes and free my hair from the towel, putting it in small bun.
"Here comes the tea" Elena says cheerfully.
"Grazie" I take the cup and we both silently sit on the bed.
While I'm sipping my tea, we both remain quiet.
"Are you hungry, miele?" Elena asks me, breaking the silence.
"No, no"I take another sip.
"So?" She starts, "Are you going to tell me why you came here, in the middle of the night, under the rain?"
I hesitate.
Should I tell her? What she would say?
"Miele" she says softly, encouraging me to tell her what's on my mind.
I put my tea on the drawer and look down at my knotted fingers.
"What's wrong?" She asks when she saw a tear drop on my cheek.
I can't believe crying.
"He told me he loved me" I whisper.
Her eyebrows raised, but she doesn't say anything.
"And I love him too" I say even quieter, not being able to look at her.
"What?" she asks, confused if she heard me right.
"I love him" I repeat, "I love him and I couldn't tell him"
She hugs in the most comforting way Elena Rinaldi could hug. And that's it. I collapse.
After sometime I stop crying and lay my head on her lap, while she strokesmy hair.
"I hate this" I manage to mumble between sobs "I hate being weak"
"Your are not weak , miele , you are in love" she says with soothing way.
"But you-"
"We are different,Aurora" she cuts me off, knowing where I want to take the conversation, " For me love was not an option. Especially, at that moment. You know how hard it was already. Love would've been considered as weakness for me, because of the stereotypes and e.t.c. Times changed, but I stayed loyal to my principe. You don't have to. Who knows? Maybe love is your strength. Maybe your love for each other will bring out the best for both of you"
"I'm guessing not anymore" I rub my nose with a back of my palm.
She looks at me with tell-me eyes. I tell her everything. From the day we first met to this day.
"And he told me that it's because he loves me, I wanted, but I didn't say it back" a tear drops from my eye "And now I lost him"
It takes time for her to respond.
"You think that love destroyed your life at some point " she finally speaks "Your parents didn't give the love you deserve and you lost them. You fell in love with a guy, and he didn't appreciate your love either. You lost him too."
Where she's going with this?
"What is your point?"
"My point is they didn't love you enough. They didn't love you the way you deserved to be loved. It's not "love" that destroyed your life...it's the lack of it"
I get up of her lap. My eyes wide open. I felt like blind person, who was given sight. A sudden realization hit me, like a wave hits a cliff.
I never thought about it this way.
She's right.
"Your scared to tell him how you feel,he just need to understand that"
I just nod.
"I see the way Christian is with you. The way he acts around you. The way he looks at you.The way he talks about you"
"Talks about me?"
Wow,what the fuck?
"He talks about me...with you?"
"Well since we're kind of friends we talk a kit different topics. When he talks about you its more like he utters few words and I figure out the rest. I guess he wants me to be informed and seeks my approve, before he does anything."
"What a gentleman" I mock.
Elena gives me one of her rare smiles.
"He loves you and deeply cares for you, I can see that in his eyes and eyes never lie"
"Oh, they wouldn't dare" I joke and we both laugh.
"Do you think he'll forgive me?"
"Of course he will"
I smile.
"With time, just give him some time" she adds and caresses my cheek.
"Now go to sleep, miele" this is a command now, to which I gladly obey. I lay down and Elena covers me with blanket, kissing my forehead.
"I love you,mom" I whisper, trying the word in an unusual tone for me.
She sighs in relief. She says that she hates when I call her "mom". But she lies. It makes her happy, I know it.
"And I you"

Elena

I lied. I lied about hating when Aurora calls me "mom". It gives me pure joy. It fills the whole in me that I had my entire life. As much as I don't appear to, I used to wanted a family. I was 27 when my father died and left me his empire. My male cousins envied me for long time, since they were the rightful heirs. But my father saw in them anything but heirs. "I'm not going to give my empire  to one of those immature, greedy idiots" he always said to me.
As I started to built my empire and develop our business, I realized that I can not have a family. Not only because other Dons will know about my weakness, and a weakness was a luxury I couldn't have, but also I couldn't give everything I created to a men. And according to our rules everything that I've created will belong to my husband. So I deprived myself of marrying and creating a family.
Of course I'm not made of stone and loved a man. I still do.
Roberto Bruno.
The most respectful and fair man I know. He refuses to have family too. Frankly speaking, because of me. I always protest him and tell him that he shouldn't do that for me, that he deserves happiness but he always said that he only wishes to marry, if that's with me. And this is my fate and im not complaining about it. Honestly, I'm happy about it. But as I said it's MY fate...not Auroras. I desire her happiness, just like a loving parent would. And if she found it with Christian, who am I to stop her? No matter how hard they fought the tension they had, eve as I expected, they gave in. I felt the sparks in them since Christian first walked into my office. But as we all no "no rain, no flower".They hurt each other, and I don't know why but I have this feeling that I need to get them together. Starting with bringing this boy to his senses. Beating to them if I have to.
In the morning I insist Aurora to stay at home. She grew up so stubborn, which I actually love in her. I wonder which parent she took it after. But as long I think about, as bigger the desire of finding those bastards and torturing them grows, so I stop.
No matter how stubborn, throughout the years I've learnt my ways of dealing with her. She needs to rest, so she can focus on her work.
When I arrive to our base, I learn that Christian is at the gym. I rarely go there. I have own gym at house. When enter the gym, he was hitting a punching bag. He doesn't acknowledge my presence, when I come in and lean on the wall.
"Dio, what did that bag do to you?" I joke.
He stops his actions and looks at me.
"What do you want?" He asks rudely.
"Watch your tone,boy" I scolded him, "We're friends, but I'm still older, ricordi?"
He makes an annoyed grimace and continues to punch.
I walk in his direction ans I lean on the small table near him.
"You remind me of myself"
He glances at me,trying to understand what I found similar in us.
"So much anger" I explain.
"I'm not angry" he says, through the panting.
Lies, lies, lies.
My lie detector alarms.
"You are. Angry at people, at yourself, at your father"
He stops.
I hit a nerve.
Good.
"Why the hell would I be angry at my father?"
"Because that's how you deal with grief, and any other thing" I can see that he feels exposed "It'll destroy you"
He goes back to punching the bag.
"Yeah, i heard that" he says.
"I'm sure you did, but you have to listen to it"
He doesn't say anything.
"You need to find ways to cool it down, like I did"
"Yeah?And how you did that?".
"Aurora"
He holds out his hand and leans on the punching bag.
"She filled the whole i had in me, the same whole that I filled with anger" i explain, " Her presence made me calm and cool"
"Why are you telling me this, Lena?" He narrows his eyes.
"I'm telling you, we are similar. She has the same affect on you, hasn't she?"
"You think she makes me calm?" He scoffs, "She makes me angrier"
"That's because you can't understand her actions"
He sighs annoyed.
"She had a tough life, Christian. She's still recovering"
He rubs the sweat of his forehead without saying a word.
"You love her" I say, watching his expression to change. "She loves you, too"
"Oh really?" he couldn't hide his skepticism, "Does she?"
"She won't admit it to you. She's afraid"
"Of me?" He sounds concerned.
Will men understand that not everything is spinning around them?
"For herself" I clarify "She doesn't want to feel weak again"
He nods.
"Give her time"
He gets up and continues to punch the bag. But he isn't angry this time. He is concentrated.
The boy needs time too, Elena.
I can't help myself, but notice that they are two massing pieces of the puzzle.
He needs to be loved and she needs to love.
I think my work is done, for now.
I'm about to leave the gym.
"Elena"
"Si?"
"We have to talk" he says, "I have something to tell you"
I'm kind of confused. And my confusion grew as I saw a hint of guilt form in his expression.
Why?
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hi friends<3
Yup, you finally get to know about Elenas past and read her point of view. Honestly, people who read the first example of the book loved Elena the best. Lemme know how you feel about her in the comments.

your humble author;)